As you may have noticed the URL you are now visiting is that of neilcormanimages.com, and if you have been redirected please make a note of this new link. During the transition to the new domain, there were a few issues with the blog which I am resolving, and it may be possible some of the comments you have posted will be lost. I am working on rectifying this and hope it is not the case.

In the next couple of days the rest of the site will be opened as well and I look forward to your feedback on this new site.

As I am in the process of moving the website to a new domain, there is no entry this week. Come back next Monday for a link to an interesting site for spring cleaning.

In the next couple of days I will be switching this blog to a new URL as I prepare for the rollout for the website, which will be the first of two. If you have this website bookmarked you will want to checkout neilcormanimages.com once the change is made. I will redirect the traffic from neilcorman.com to this new URL so you will be able to still access this site until the second site is released.

You may be wondering why these changes will be taking place. When I attended SB2 in April, a business of photography conference, and talked websites with people who have been in the business for a while as both photographers and marketing consultants it made sense to separate the two sites. This blog will join a gallery of images available for viewing and allow retail customers to take a look at my images. The other site will focus on a commercial and editorial market allowing the site to be catered to the format which works best for those viewers.

I am hoping the transition to the new site will go well, and it should be viewable in the next couple of days. Hopefully you will like the site, and I look forward to hearing your feedback.

Some of the first images I will post will be those taken during the past few days while I was in Las Vegas as well as the Colfax Marathon which was run this morning.

The following image was taken this past Thanksgiving morning from Coronado looking back at the skyline of San Diego, and is now featured on the cover of the 2008 Membership Guide for the San Diego Association of Law Libraries. As this is a horizontal it is presented as a wrap on the guide which is sent to all of the members of SANDALL.

Today I joined the world of Twitter. What is twitter? Check out the site and find out more, http://www.twitter.com.

My Twitter profile is at Neil Corman Twitter Profile.

Warmer weather is starting to appear, and how many times have you jumped on a bicycle without a helmet, whether it was for a short ride in traffic across town or many miles down a bike path. There are various reasons why you would not wear one; from it just being something else to carry when you get to your destination, it messes up your hair, you look dorky with it on and the countless other reasons. Well 22 years ago tomorrow, I didn’t have a bicycle helmet on while riding home from soccer practice and it impacted my life. I won’t go into the specifics about what happened and the injuries suffered but needless to say it has changed the thought process of using bicycle helmets for many people I know when I tell the story.

Here are some facts from the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute regarding injuries for bicyclists:

• There are 85 million bicycle riders in the US.
• About 540,000 bicyclists visit emergency rooms with injuries every year. Of those, about 67,000 have head injuries, and 27,000 have injuries serious enough to be hospitalized.
• A very high percentage of cyclists’ brain injuries can be prevented by a helmet, estimated at anywhere from 45 to 88 per cent.
• 770 bicyclists died on US roads in 2006, down just 14 from the year before. Over 90 percent died in crashes with motor vehicles.

Now I don’t want to scare you with the statistics as a bicycle is a great way to get around but throwing a helmet on your head is another thing you should do when out riding. Helmets vary in price, but some can be purchased for around $20.

If you don’t have a helmet, I encourage you to check out the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute website to find out more information. At the website you will find information on how to buy a helmet, how to fit a helmet, the locations where the use of a helmet is mandatory and until what age (you may be surprised at some of the restrictions) and much more.

When you are riding a bicycle always make sure a helmet is on your head, as you never know what can happen.

Today is Mother’s Day in the United States and also some other countries, but for my mom it is a double special day as it is her birthday as well. Every five years or so this happens and it becomes Mom’s weekend. Of course Mother’s Day isn’t limited to one day but every day.

Happy Mother’s Day, Mom!

Happy Birthday Mom!

I love you.

Last weekend, I spent a couple of days at one of the newest national parks in the United States. Located near Alamosa, Colorado, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve moved towards national park status when the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Act of 2000 was signed into law setting the blueprint for additional land to be purchased. In 2004 the park changed from a National Monument after 97,000 additional acres of land was purchased with the assistance of the Nature Conservancy. When you think of sand dunes you may think warmth through the whole year, however at an elevation of 8100 feet and with the highest dunes rising some 750 feet it is a park which experiences all of the seasons. Additionally including several 13,000 peaks the park includes a diverse range of features.

The following image was taken just prior to the wind picking up late one afternoon as I was walking on the dunes. Using my wide angle lens and getting low to the surface I wanted to bring a scene which a person could easily step into the image and place themselves on the dunes.

The final day of April brought temperatures near 80 in Denver. The first day of May, gave us rain, snow and at times a mix. Looking out my office window at the big flakes coming down from the sky I decided a quick trip to Washington Park was in order. After the short drive, I found a nearly empty park similar to two months earlier when we had a warm day followed by snow.

At the park, I made a loop of Smith Lake and found this tree which told a story of the day.

I imagine this will be the last snowfall of the season, or you would think, so the next trip to Washington Park would be to check out how the trees I found this winter and spring in the park look during the different seasons.

Linking the Weekend to the Week today is the website of Paul Corman-Roberts . You may notice the Corman in the name, and yes Paul is related to me as my brother-in-law. As a poet, pundit and pulpist in the San Francisco Bay area and author of Coming WorldGone World, Paul provides a unique take on the events of the world through his words. On his website you will find some samples or teasers of his work, upcoming events, products for sale as well as a blog with information he finds relevant. Be sure to check out his words, and let Paul or myself know what you think.